AN inquest into the death of a schoolgirl found hanging in her bedroom has returned an open verdict.

Katie Street, 14, of Mill Lane, Brereton, died on Sunday, March 6. The hearing at Crewe was told she and her twin brother James were in a road traffic collision in October 2002 when she received a head injury.

In the following months, her behaviour had turned aggressive and she had been known to self-harm.

Therapists said it could not be determined whether the head injury had contributed to her state of mind in the months before her death.

She lived with her parents Rod and Sue Street and brother James, also a pupil of Holmes Chapel Comprehensive School.

The inquest was told she was excluded from school at Holmes Chapel in November 2004 and was then transferred to Wood-ford Lodge School in Winsford, due to her behavioural needs.

Psychiatrist Andrew Weaver said: 'The last time Katie came to see me she seemed very calm so it was very distressing to hear of her death.

'She always seemed determined to make things work and she saw exclusion as a bad thing. Some would like the fact they didn't have to go to school but Katie wasn't like that.

'She was looking at possibilities at school such as drama and even considered the air cadets. I thought she would do extremely well if she could channel her energies into these.

'Katie was a likeable girl with strong opinions and I could see a lot of positives in her.'

Holmes Chapel Comprehensive headteacher Denis Oliver said he took the decision to exclude Katie from the school following 62 occasions of aggressive behaviour and self harming over a two-year period.

He told the inquest: 'My colleagues and I were proactive in managing Katie's behaviour and we tried every support mechanism possible to help.

'The decision to permanently exclude Katie came because we had to think about how her behaviour was affecting her fellow pupils.'

In recording an open verdict, Cheshire coroner Dr Nicholas Rheinberg said: 'The evidence did not sufficiently disclose the intention of the deceased.'